Background: Evidence shows that medical education includes a variety of basic and clinical skills. Ethical and human values are not typically considered in medical school curricula, and this is evident in medical practice in certain scenarios such as…
BACKGROUND: Children with advanced cancer have access to comprehensive cancer care and hospice care if they enroll in concurrent hospice care. However, little is known about the patterns of nonhospice healthcare services used by these children.…
BACKGROUND: Advanced childhood cancer, a condition with no available cancer-focused treatment options, greatly impacts Quality of Life (QoL). We need appropriate assessment strategies to select adapted treatment targets, improve care and optimize…
BACKGROUND: Although advance care planning (ACP) has been widely recommended to support patient and family engagement in understanding the patient's values, preferences and goals of care, there are only a few models in paediatric oncology that…
For the sizeable subset of adolescents and young adults whose cancer is incurable, developmentally appropriate end-of-life discussions are critical. Standards of care for adolescent and young adult end-of-life communication have been established,…
Objective: To synthesize existing qualitative research exploring the experiences of parents caring for children with cancer during the end-of-life phase, and the factors that influence parental decision-making when choosing the location of…
BACKGROUND: Social workers (SWs) and chaplains are trained to support families facing challenges associated with critical illness and potential end-of-life issues. Little is known about how parents view SW/chaplain involvement in care for critically…
BACKGROUND: Providing access to pediatric palliative care (PPC) for children living with a serious illness, such as cancer, is of critical importance, although this specialized intervention, as a novel concept, still seems vague and complicated. The…
AIM: To identify barriers in the understanding and provision of optimal palliative care to Aboriginal children with cancer by health-care staff, with the aim to support education and training that highlights the importance of cultural, physical and…
Objectives 1. Describe the concept of hope based on perspectives of AYAs who experienced advanced cancer. 2. Differentiate the role hope has for AYAs before, during, and after experiencing cancer. Context In clinical care, addressing patients’ hopes…
OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to describe in the words of child-rearing parents with incurable cancer, what they had gained or thought about as a result of participating in a five-session, scripted, telephone-delivered…
Background: Recently, awareness of children's decision making has increased in an effort to enhance palliative care. However, the conceptual framework for decision making among children with cancer remains unclear. Aims: We clarified the…
Background: Most parents vividly recall the weeks, days, and moments preceding their child's death for years to come. Dissatisfaction with communication about their child's condition and lack of guidance can contribute to stress prior to a child's…
Purpose of reviewThis article reviews the current literature on psychosocial care of children with cancer with particular focus on evidence-based standards of care, including developments in systematic distress screening, utilization of…
The definition of adolescents and young adults (AYAs) in oncology varies with upper limits up to age 39. Younger AYAs, ages 12-24 years, are often cared for within pediatrics. In caring for AYAs with cancer, there are unique considerations that…
Background: Specialist paediatric palliative care services are promoted as an important component of palliative care provision, but there is uncertainty about their role for children with cancer. Aim(s): To examine the impact of specialist paediatric…
Delivering optimal end-of-life (EOL) care to children and adolescents is a healthcare priority, yet relatively little is known about what patients, families, and healthcare providers (HCPs) consider "best" practices. The objective of this study was…
The COVID-19 pandemic is one of the most serious global challenges to delivering affordable and equitable treatment to children with cancer we have witnessed in the last few decades. This Special Report aims to summarize general principles for…
OBJECTIVES: Identifying the preferred place of death for children/young people with cancer and determining whether this is achieved is pertinent to inform palliative care service provision. The aims of this retrospective case series review were to…
Purpose: Parents of children that die from cancer are at increased risk of significant long-term psychosocial and physical morbidities. Less, however, is known about the experience of parents early in the grief process. Currently used frameworks and…
Pediatric palliative care aims to alleviate suffering and improve the quality of life of children with serious disease and increase support for their parents and other family members. Integration of palliative care into the routine care of children,…
Background: Adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with cancer receive high-intensity care and experience significant symptoms at the end of life. As novel cancer-directed therapies increase, AYAs with advanced cancer may face multiple treatment…
BACKGROUND: When children are seriously ill, parents rely on communication with their clinicians. However, in previous research, researchers have not defined how this communication should function in pediatric oncology. We aimed to identify these…
INTRODUCTION: Regret about loss is one of the most intense types of regret experienced in life. Little is known about the bereavement regret of parents whose child has died of cancer. Although knowledge about parents' experiences after their child's…
CONTEXT: Approximately 12% of children with cancer will not survive, representing a devastating loss for parents. Strategies to improve parental coping and grief have been understudied. Although legacy-making is frequently offered as standard care to…
BACKGROUND: Healthcare providers' perceptions of palliative care in children with cancer influence care management, specifically that of its early integration. Thus, it is crucial to understand the perspectives of the providers on early integration…
Oral health care is an integral component of interprofessional collaborative care for children and adolescents diagnosed with cancer. The current review highlights the phases of cancer therapy when dental interventions and palliative care are…
CONTEXT: Cancer is the leading cause of non-accidental death in childhood, with the death of a child representing a devastating loss for families. Peer support offers a valuable way to support parents' adjustment in bereavement. The By My Side book…
This study aims to synthesize qualitative evidence about the bereavement experience of parents following the death of a child due to cancer. A qualitative metasynthesis was conducted from searching five databases. The search identified 650 articles…
PURPOSE: Previous research shows that bereaved parents are at an increased risk for intense and prolonged grief responses. To offer effective support to parents during a child's cancer treatment and after their child's death, more knowledge is needed…
Objectives: The present study characterized the psychiatric diagnoses and symptoms that led to the administration of antipsychotic medications in children and adolescents with cancer, and to evaluate the benefits and tolerability of these drugs in a…
BACKGROUND: Children with advanced cancer experience symptoms despite access to quality care. Symptom research has previously relied upon retrospective designs and parent proxy rather than prospective measurement with self-report. OBJECTIVE: This…
PURPOSE: This report represents a subanalysis of data from a primary study and addresses a gap in understanding the similarities and differences of symptom reporting between children with advanced cancer and their parents. The objectives of this…
Continuous deep sedation (CDS) is used to alleviate unbearable and otherwise refractory symptoms in patients dying of cancer. No data are available concerning CDS in children from Japan to date. This study primarily aimed to describe experience in…
Background: Many parents of children with advanced cancer pursue curative goals when cure is no longer possible. To the authors' knowledge, no pediatric studies to date have prospectively evaluated prognosis communication or influences on decision…
Context: Racial and ethnic disparities in end-of-life care are well documented among adults with advanced cancer. Objective(s): To examine the extent to which communication and care differ by race and ethnicity among children with advanced cancer.…
Palliative care (PC) serves a valuable role throughout the disease trajectory for adolescents and young adults (AYAs) living with cancer. A 3-year retrospective chart review was performed to characterize AYA PC referral patterns in patients aged…
BACKGROUND: Prior research has demonstrated that the presence of regret and unfinished business is associated with poorer adjustment in bereavement. Though there is a growing literature on these constructs among caregivers of adult patients, the…
